Day 5 on the farm 19/3/13

I’m sat by the river in the sun, slightly shaded by the trees. I spent the day forking wood chip into a wheelbarrow and tipping it over rocks and clay. Other work I’ve done the last couple of days is prepare flowerbeds for planting tomorrow when the plants arrive. This is all pretty hard work for someone who has never done any gardening or even used a fork or spade in her life. My mum always said I had pen pusher hands which I think was proved today when I got the sixth blister on my hands ha. I am loving it though! I think partly because its different and partly because I get to wake up to the most amazing views and am literally living the life. We pop into the nearest town, Bicheno, every couple of days. Just 10 minutes away it has a wonderful beach and a blowhole around a lovely rocky area and the people here are so friendly. I really have absolutely nothing to complain about. The birds are tweeting and flying around the place. There is an abundance of butterflies that are always fluttering by. The worst insects I have seen so far are crickets but only because they look like cockroaches. A few times a day you hear a gun shot go off where a farmer is taking a pop at some crows or a roo or whatever takes their fancy! Dick Dundee shoots his own kangaroos and prepares them for food himself, I can just imagine how good that tastes!!! I really hope I get a chance to get on his farm at some point, without offending my new farmer friend.

A day in the life pretty much consists of getting up early and having breakfast. Maybe popping into town for supplies or errands. Getting to work, whatever needs doing. Having lunch. Going for a walk or sitting by the river and reading/writing. Catching up with the news. Having dinner, tonight is BBQ can’t wait! Enjoying the complete peace and quiet then getting to bed early to be ready for another day. There is a rooster next door but you can barely hear it as next door is, as you can probably guess, not that close. So I wake up naturally without an alarm every morning, it’s pretty special, as the Aussies like to say.

It turns out this isn’t the families main farm, which is in the North. This is where they sell their produce and grow a few strawberries. I’m meeting the farmers wife tomorrow who is coming down to visit and maybe the whole family at Easter time. He has 3 children and too many grandchildren to count. There are plans for dune buggies for kids on the many acres here and a tipi for campers. I’m really excited about being a part of all this expansion. It’s a great experience. I’ve been preparing the wooden poles for the tipi. I’ve also helped promote the place online which is something new I can bring to here as the farmer doesn’t have much clue about such things. The big kid in me is looking forward to getting a go on the dune buggy that should be on its way!
I feel miles away from anything, including my own life, especially back home and its strange to think everything is still going on while I’m out here living healthily and peacefully in this little corner of the world.